The couple, dressed as a prom king and queen, had their faces smeared with blood-like makeup.

The "bloody prom king and queen" were there to drive home the fact that fatalities or serious injuries from driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs are entirely preventable tragedies.

Sadowski told the students that each of them is endowed with reaction time, vision, hearing and physical strength to make them the "best drivers on the road," but the consumption of alcohol or drugs wipes away all of those attributes, according to Ann Brodsky, who accompanied the trio around the CHS campus.

Brodsky, who is the Chico Unified School District "safe and drug-free schools" coordinator, said the program targeted youngsters who will be going to prom later this year.

She described the day's activities as a "booster" shot to follow the "Every 15 Minutes" program that was conducted on all of the high school campuses last year. Every 15 Minutes is an intense effort to help teens understand the wide-ranging and tragic impact that can come from driving under the influence.

Brodsky said she watched the students as the highway patrolman talked about the dangers of making a bad decision when it comes to impaired driving.

"I was extremely impressed, touched by the faces and the body language of the students," she said.

The core message was "staying safe and staying sober."

The message will be a reoccurring theme as the school's prom approaches.

Brodsky said when the students buy their prom tickets they get a packet that contains several items including a card with the staying safe and staying sober logo. The prom-goers are told to bring the card with them and if they do, they will be able to enter a drawing for a secret prize.